Wisconsin heads into Saturday’s home date with Michigan State carrying real momentum after its road upset of then-No. 13 Penn State, and the matchup now shifts to Camp Randall Stadium with Luke Fickell’s team sitting at 3-1.
Michigan State arrives at 2-2 under first-year head coach Pat Fitzgerald, a former Northwestern leader whose teams have long been associated with toughness and physical play. The Spartans have already handled Toledo and Eastern Michigan, but they’ve also taken losses to Notre Dame and Nebraska. And while the roster has some capable pieces, the overall talent level is described as thin, especially with running back Cam Edwards out for the rest of the season.
Here are four Spartans Wisconsin fans should have on the radar.
Quarterback Alessio Milivojevic is still early in his run as the starter, but he’s already shown both why Michigan State trusts him and why there’s room for concern. He began the final four games of 2025 and did enough to lock down the job for 2026. Through four games this fall, the redshirt sophomore has completed 67.0% of his throws for 748 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions.
The production has come with a split personality. Milivojevic tossed all three of his touchdown passes against Michigan State’s Group of Six opponents, while all three interceptions have come in the last two weeks against tougher competition.
He’s also coughed up a fumble. A team captain, he’s more of a pocket passer than a threat with his legs, and the ball has too often been in danger.
His eight turnover-worthy plays are tied for sixth most in the FBS, according to PFF. Wisconsin just held veteran Rocco Becht in check at Beaver Stadium, and the Badgers will try to put the younger, less seasoned Milivojevic in the same kind of bind.
With Edwards done for the year after getting hurt against Nebraska, Michigan State’s backfield turns to a committee look, but Patterson appears to be the lead option. The fifth-year senior is second on the team in carries with 26 for 100 yards and two touchdowns, good for 3.8 yards per rush. He didn’t touch the ball in the loss to Notre Dame, but he was clearly the main runner against Nebraska, handling 16 carries for 54 yards and a touchdown.
The numbers haven’t been flashy, yet Patterson brings something the staff can lean on: experience. The Iowa transfer has 221 career carries and seems to have earned more trust than Western Kentucky transfer Marvis Parrish or Brandon Tullis. He may not be a true bell cow, but he should get the first crack at the workload against Wisconsin.
The most important defensive name for the Spartans is Hall, and when he’s available, he’s been excellent. The two-time captain has played in three games and piled up 21 tackles, including 12 solo stops, along with three tackles for loss. His 87.3 PFF grade leads the team.
Availability is the issue. Hall missed Week 2 against Eastern Michigan because of a right arm injury, then was carted off in the third quarter against Nebraska last week with what appeared to be a left leg injury.
There has been no update on his status, so his availability for Saturday in Madison is very much up in the air. That matters even more because fellow starting linebacker Brady Pretzlaff was already banged up and missed the Nebraska game.
If Hall can’t go, Michigan State’s linebacker depth gets stretched fast, with Dion Crawford and Caleb Wheatland both carrying health questions of their own.
Up front, Coenen has been one of the Spartans’ early bright spots. The junior defensive lineman, who made the jump from Division II Bemidji State to Illinois before landing at Michigan State, leads the team with three sacks, all of them coming in Week 2 against Eastern Michigan. He also has 12 tackles, six solo stops and a pass breakup, and his 11 pressures are the most on the team.
There’s a catch, though. Coenen’s pass-rush production has come with shaky tackling, as reflected in his 24.4 PFF tackling grade and four missed tackles. Wisconsin will want to keep him from affecting Colton Joseph in passing situations, but he may be a player the Badgers can go after in the run game.
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